WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota women's tennis team kicks off its 2015 season at home Sunday, as the Cardinals entertain Carleton in a 10 a.m. Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference match at the Winona Tennis Center.
 
The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (2014: 4-6 MIAC | 10-8 Overall) vs. Carleton Knights (10-0 MIAC | 19-3 Overall)
 
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Last Action:
• Today's match is the season-opener for both the Cardinals and the Knights
 
Saint Mary's vs. Carleton—A Year Ago:
• February 1, 2014: The Cardinals got a 6-3, 6-4 win by Megan Vandenberg (DePere, Wis.)—playing in her first collegiate match—at No. 5 singles, but that would be Saint Mary's lone win in an 8-1 conference loss to Carleton at the Winona Tennis Center | Recap
 
Up Next:
•  Saint Mary's: The Cardinals are back on their home Winona Tennis Center courts next weekend for a pair of nonconference matches, hosting Bethany Lutheran in a 5 p.m. match on Friday, before entertaining Martin Luther on Sunday at 3 p.m.
• Carleton: After a second match on Saturday against Winona State, the Knights head to Lifetime Fitness in Lakeville, Minn., on Thursday, for a 6:30 p.m. conference match against Hamline.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2015 Roster | 2015 Schedule | 2015 Statistics
The Cardinals finished 6-2 against non-MIAC opponents last season and are now 14-4 in nonconference matches over the past two seasons. … Fueled by wins in her final three matches, Megan Vandenberg (DePere, Wis.) finished the year with a team-leading 14 singles wins, one more than Haley Jorgensen (Fallon, Nev.) and two in front of Lindsey Reinisch (Hastings, Minn.). … Jorgensen collected the decisive, match-clinching win at No. 6 singles in two of SMU's four 5-4 victories this season — with both of those victories going the maximum three sets. … Vandenberg had her season-opening seven-match singles winning streak snapped with a 6-0, 6-1 loss to St. Catherine's Mikinzee Salo on March 21. … Vandenberg also finished 2014 with a team-leading 11 doubles wins, one more than Reinisch. … Saint Mary's used 14 different doubles combinations this season. … Seven of the Cardinals' 10 wins came on their home court — Saint Mary's finished 3-3 away from the Winona Tennis Center. 
 
Scouting The Carleton Knights:
2015 Roster | 2015 Schedule | 2015 Statistics
The Knights head into Sunday's match against Saint Mary's coming off a perfect run through the conference schedule a year ago—not to mention the MIAC tournament title and a berth in the NCAA national championships. … Carleton, which closed out 2014 ranked No. 24 in the country—and is currently ranked No. 26 in the ITA Preseason Poll—', reached the NCAA tournament for the third straight season a year ago—opening with a 5-0 win over Westminster (Pa.), before falling to U. of Chicago 5-2. … The Knights kick off 2015 without the services of graduated seniors Anne Lombardi, Katherine Greenberg, and Molly Hemes, who were a part of two MIAC regular-season titles, three MIAC Playoff Championships, and three trips to the NCAA Championships—including opening-round victories each time. … Carleton boasted six players who had 10 or more dual-match singles wins a year ago, led by Greenberg (17-3), Joyce Yu (15-4), and Mikayla Becich (14-3). … As a team, Carleton was 108-36 in singles play a year ago. … The doubles teams of Becich-Grace Davis and Lombardi-Yu each recorded a team-high 12 doubles wins last season. … The Knights, who used 16 different doubles combinations, went 56-24 in doubles play in 2014. … Carleton was a perfect 6-0 on its home court a year ago, while going 13-3 on the road.